President Donald Trump has described the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor as “a shame” and “very sad” for Britain’s royal family, while reiterating that he has been cleared of any wrongdoing in matters relating to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Speaking to reporters, Trump expressed sympathy for the royal household and concern over the potential impact on King Charles III, who is reportedly planning a state visit to the United States in April.
“I think it’s a shame. I think it’s very sad. I think it’s so bad for the royal family. It’s very, very sad to me. It’s a very sad thing when I see that,” Trump said, referring to the arrest of Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.
Andrew has denied all accusations against him and has maintained that he never witnessed or suspected any of the behaviour of which Epstein was accused.
When pressed on whether similar arrests might occur in the United States, Trump declined to speculate and instead emphasised his own legal position.
“I’m the expert in a way, because I’ve been totally exonerated,” Trump said. “I can actually speak about it very nicely.”
The president, who has consistently denied any wrongdoing related to Epstein, suggested that renewed attention on the issue was politically motivated.
“It’s really interesting, because nobody used to speak about Epstein when he was alive, but now they speak, but I’m the one that can talk about it, because I’ve been totally exonerated,” he said.
“I did nothing. In fact, the opposite — he was against me, he was fighting me in the election, which I just found out throughout the last 3 million pages of documents.”
Trump, who has long expressed admiration for Britain’s monarchy, said Andrew’s predicament was particularly unfortunate given the King’s upcoming visit to the US.
“It’s a very sad thing to see it and to see what’s going on with his brother, who’s obviously coming to our country very soon, and he’s a fantastic man, the king,” Trump said.
